Viacom teams with SMiT to launch My Nick Jr personalised content

Viacom teams with SMiT to launch My Nick Jr personalised content
Editor | 23-04-2014
Viacom International Media Networks (VIMN) Asia has entered into a technology partnership with one of the region's leading security firms, SMiT, to offer personalised content for the children's sector.

SMiT's conditional access technology will be used as part of the launch in Asia of My Nick Jr following successful debuts of the service in France and the UK, and an announced launch in the US. As part of their rationale for launch, the partners quote research by CNNIC showing that 247 out of nearly 500 million Chinese mobile users now watch videos online in China.

The channel is described as a first of its kind user-personalised edutainment programming service that allows parents to curate and customise their children's multi-platform linear viewing experience around 11 educational themes.

My Nick Jr will be offered in two languages in one market, providing parents the option to set their children's viewing experience to English or Mandarin. Additionally, parents may choose desired viewing durations, can be sent email 'report cards' summarising what their children have watched and which topics have been covered within the viewed episodes, and use the shows for discussions with their children.

The launch also marks the first time in the world that My Nick Jr will be delivered as a dedicated over-the-top (OTT) offering. In China it will be available to subscribers of the iVmall OTT platform — operated by SMiT subsidiary Shenzhen Video Mall Network Technology Co — which will run China's first completely online video paid subscriber model. Commercial launch for My Nick Jr is expected by the middle of 2014 via iOS and Android apps and a dedicated website.

"Nick Jr is about giving children and parents what they want – 'A Smart Place to Play'," said Bob Bakish, president and CEO of VIMN. "With My Nick Jr we are offering parents a unique user-personalised digital viewing edutainment experience for their children to learn in a safe, supervised environment while maximising their enjoyment watching their beloved Nick Jr shows and characters like Dora the Explorer ... SMIT not only shares our belief in this product for children, but also delivers the technology know-how to bring My Nick Jr to life in China."

"We are convinced of the potential of the My Nick Jr service as we are living in the world of personalisation. Chinese families who join our Internet video service will love the My Nick Jr service for their children and we are delighted to not only be the first Internet video platform to launch it in China, but in Asia too. This certainly reinforces our commitment to be a serious player in the burgeoning Internet Video service market in China," added SMiT's chairman and CEO Xueliang Huang.